Glove construction



I M. SCHERR GLOVE CONSTRUCTION Oct. 6, 1959 Filed June 13, 1958 Kim INVENTOR -MAUI2ICE Scum:

ATTORNEY$ United States Patent GLOVE CONSTRUCTION Maurice Scherr, Orlando, Fla.

Application June 13, 1958, Serial No. 741,880 2 Claims. (Cl. 2-159) This invention relates generally to an improved glove construction and more particularly to a construction for use with gloves formed of a stretchable material and adapted to fit various hand sizes in combination with a wear-resisting and gripping palm which does not unduly limit the ability of the glove to stretch and fit a large range of hand sizes.

With widespread use of synthetic stretchable yarns, such as Helanca-nylon and blends of Helanca-nylon with other non-stretchable conventional yarns, such as cotton and wool, many knitted gloves are now being made with this type yarn to provide a knitted glove which will stretch to fit a large range of hand sizes. It is desirable to manufacture stretchable gloves for several reasons. From an economical standpoint it is cheaper to produce gloves which are all knit the same size than it is to manufacture, stock and ship gloves of various sizes. stretchable gloves are very comfortable to wear because they provide a snug fit but do not bind or limit the normal activities of the fingers and thumb. The retail stores prefer selling gloves made of stretchable yarn which fit a wide range of hand sizes because they do not have to maintain a large inventory of different sizes and the stretchable gloves sell at a faster rate than gloves knit of non-stretchable yarn. The increased sales and popularity of stretchable gloves are attributable to the fact that stretchable gloves are being purchased as gifts because it is not necessary to know the exact hand size of the person for whom the gloves are purchased since they will fit any size hand.

The commercial success of stretchable one-size gloves has been excellent but this type of glove has several disadvantages. One of the chief disadvantages is that the stretchable yarn is relatively slick and the gloves make it diflicult to handle or firmly grasp smooth objects such as the steering wheel of an automobile. For this reason, stretchable gloves are not used primarily in driving or handling relatively smooth objects and leather gloves or gloves having a leather palm are still relied upon. Of course, leather gloves are wear-resistant and have good frictional gripping qualities on smooth objects such as the steering wheel of an automobile but have the disadvantage that they will not stretch and therefore must be manufactured in a variety of hand sizes.

With the foregoing in'mind, it is the primary object of this invention to provide a novel glove construction utilizing the advantages of stretchable gloves as well as those of leather gloves while at the same time overcoming the disadvantages of both types.

It is a more specific object of this invention to provide a novel glove construction which combines a glove knit of stretchable yarn with a leather or non-stretchable palm portion, the palm portion being novel in its construction and attachment so as to not unduly restrict the stretchable characteristics of the glove while providing the desired degree of wear-resistance and frictional gripping qualities.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated,

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other objects will appear as the description proceeds when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of the palm side of the glove illustrating the location of the leather palm portion when the glove is worn on the hand;

Figure 2 is an elevation looking at the palm side of the glove with the thumb turned back and the glove flattened to illustrate the location of the leather palm portion'when the glove is relaxed;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view through one finger of the glove with the stretchable fabric in extended position, substantially the position assumed when the glove is worn and taken substantiallyalong the line 3-3 in Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through one finger of the glove with the stretchable fabric in relaxed position and being taken substantially along the line 44 in Figure 2.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 10 broadly designates a glove formed of a stretchable fabric which may be knit of a stretch yarn such as Helanca-type stretchable nylon or a composite yarn consisting of a stretch yarn and other fibers or yarns. For example, the yarn may be 70 percent wool and 30 percent stretchable nylon. The glove 10 includes a cuff or wrist portion 11, fingers 12, 13, 14, 15 and a thumb 16.

The glove 10 is provided with a non-stretchable palm 20 of wear-resistant material suitably secured thereto, in a manner to be later described. The palm 20 covers the areas of the glove which are normally exposed to the greatest amount of wear and where frictional gripping qualities are desired when the gloves are worn. The palm 20 includes integrally formed finger strips 22, 23, 24 and 25, a thumb strip 26 and a substantially V-shaped heel tab 27.

It is preferred that the palm 20 be formed of a rela tively thin pliable leather and attached to the glove by a row of sewn stitches 30 which extends around the outer periphery or contour of the palm 20. Thus, each of the finger strips 22 through 25 and the thumb strip 26 are secured to the corresponding fingers and thumb of the glove 10 adjacent opposite side edges thereof as indicated in Figures 2 and 4.

By referring to Figure 4, it will be noted that the finger strip 22 is attached to the finger 12 by the stitching 30 and covers an area of substantially one-fifth the circumference of the stretchable fabric forming finger 12 when relaxed. When the glove 10 is placed on the hand, the index finger will stretch that portion of the fabric in the finger 12 which is not held against extension by the finger strip 22 to substantially the position shown in Figure 3. It will be noted in Figure 3 that the leather finger strip 22 is attached at the top and centrally of the finger 12 where it will normally engage any object grasped in the hand to provide a frictional gripping and wear-resistant surface on the inner portion of the glove.

It will also be noted that when the glove is placed on the hand, as shown in Figure 3, the fabric of the finger 12 is expanded throughout its circumference except in the portion located beneath the leather finger strip 22. Thus, the relatively narrow centrally located finger strips and thumb strip provide maximum extensibility to each finger and thumb of the glove while providing gripping wear-resisting surfaces thereto.

The finger strips 22, 23, 24 and 25 are spaced apart from each other a substantial distance in relation to their width and join the palm 20 at points inwardly of the points at which the fingers 12, 13, 14 and 15 are joined.- By spacing the finger strips apart from each other, by a distance at least as great as the width of the finger strips,

and extending the strips inwardly beyond the points at which the fingers join, the glove has a sufficient amount of stretchable fabric surrounding the base of the fingers 1 1 2, 13, 14 and 15 so that their mobility is not restricted.

It will be observed in Figure 2 that the heel tab 27 of the palm 20 extends in the opposite direction from the finger strips 22 through 25 and in the same general direction as the thumb strip 26. The sides of the thumb strip 26 are substantially parallel while the sides of the heel tab 27 converge and join at the apex of the heel tab 27. The side of the heel tab 27 adjacent the thumb strip 26 is cut at an angle relative to the thumb strip 26 to provide a substantially inverted V-shaped opening between the heel portion 27 and the thumb strip 26. Since expansion or stretching of the fabric positioned beneath the leather palm 20 is restricted by the stiching 30, the inverted V-shaped opening between the heel tab 27 and thumb strip 26 provides an unrestricted portion of stretchable fabric between the thumb strip 26 and heel portion 27 to allow freedom of movement of the thumb. It will be noted that one edge of the heel tab 27, the edge adjacent the thumb strip 26, is secured to the palm along a line extending diagonally of the palm and in the general direction of a line in the hand which is commonly known as the life-line by a palmist.

While the glove is described as being knit, it is to be understood that the glove could be formed in any other desired manner with a stretchable type yarn such as by crotcheting, if desired. Although the'palm 20 is described as being formed of leather, it is to be understood that other suitable non-stretchable pliable material may be utilized if desired. While it is preferred that the palm 20 be attached to the glove 10 by a row of sewn stitches following the outline of the palm, the palm may be attached by other suitable means such as glue 'or the like.

It is thus seen that an improved glove construction has been provided utilizing a stretchable glove and a non stretchable palm portion attached thereto to take advantage of the desirable features of a stretchable glove and the desirable features of a leather glove while overcoming .4 the disadvantages of both. This improved glove construction is made possible by the use of a non-stretchable palm which is shaped and attached to the glove in a novel manner so as to not unduly limit extension of the glove while providing a gripping and wear-resisting surface.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention and, although specific terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. A tubular knit seamless glove having finger and thumb portions, said glove being knit from stretchable yarn and including a non-stretchable palm portion providing wear-resisting and gripping surfaces on one side of the glove, said non-stretchable palm including narrow extensions superposed on the fingers and thumb of the glove, the extensions of the palm'being spaced inwardly from the marginal edges of the fingers and thumb of the glove.

2. A tubular knit seamless glove having finger and thumb portions, said glove being knit from stretchable yarn and including a palm piece providing wear-resisting and gripping surfaces on one side of the glove, said palm piece including narrow extensions superimposed on said finger and thumb portions of the glove, and the extensions of the palm piece corresponding with the finger portions of the glove being spaced inwardly from the marginal edges of their respective finger portions and being approximately one-third the width of said finger portions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,149,139 Heagle Aug. 3, 1915 2,148,849 Blewer Feb. 28, 1939 2,344,477 Wells Mar. 14, 1944 2,459,985 WoodbuW Jan. 25, 1949 

